My co-teacher, an Aussie just got fired. My boss gave him notice on pay day and told him not to come the next day. :shock: I had a great time working with him. I have to say that he did a better job than me, but they still fired him. He got the sack for two reasons: Firstly, he doesn’t have a North American accent. Secondly, they are not willing to pay for a five hour a day part time teacher anymore, which also means they are combining classes. I ended up getting around 25 first graders in my class. But the official reason the school gave him is that the company is confronting a financial crisis. All the other teacheres were shocked. My new colleague asked me,“Can they do that? We have to give them 2 months notice before leaving, and have to pay them if we terminate the contract early, but they can fire us whenever they want?” Well, I guess so.
Anyboday had experience dealing with cheap bosses?
If your friend was legally employed, my understanding is (and I’m not a lawyer, mind you) that the employer must give 30 days written notice before terminating employment, otherwise said employer is liable for at least 1 month’s wages if the employee has worked a full year at the company. Most employers – including my former employer, a WELL KNOWN publishing house in Taipei – one that’s way, way over to the point on the compass where the sun rises, let us say – neglect to mention this point, and most foreigners do not know it. You can of course get into a protracted legal battle over “he left voluntarily/no I didn’t” or “his work was crap/No it was great” but basically that would be for the judge to decide. The 30 days written notice thing is definitely true, as I received not one, not two…but SEVEN written notices of termination of employment when said former empoyer decided to breach contract.
If it’s less than a year employment, I"m not sure what the terms are, but it might be worthwhle to look up the actual Labor Standards Law and read it. It’s on the Web in English somewhere. (Sorry don’t have time to find it right now.)
I think you are right Ironlady, but with locals. I thought that contract workers (like all us big-noses) were not subject to that. Sure, bosses can choose to do the right thing, but will they?
But I could be completely mistaken so don’t go to the bank with this information.
I could be wrong, but I could’ve sworn I heard somewhere that buxiban/anqinban teachers don’t get certain protections/benefits under Taiwan’s labor laws, like labor insurance, etc.
From what I can see most buxibans treat teachers as disposable at will. I would doubt the legal system would impinge on the convenience of buxiban owners in relation to getting rid of foreigners.
Your friend is entitled to severance pay of one month for every year worked. If your friend worked for less than one year, the amount is pro-rated. Your friend’s ex-boss also has to pay him a penalty for the short notification. The Labor Standards Law says that you have to notify people before you fire them as follows
3 months~1 year 10 days
1 year~3 years 20 days
3 years 30 days
If the notification period is too short, the employer has to pay the employee one day salary for each day the notification period is short. So if you worked for 6 months and I fired you with three days notice, I would have to pay you seven days of salary on top of half a month’s salary.
These are minimums set by the Labor Standards Law. Your contract cannot set these aside although it can give you better terms. Buxiban teachers are covered by the Labor Standards Law, foreign or otherwise.
If your friend’s boss doesn’t pay up, your friend should file a complaint with the local Labor Board. There is one in every city or county, and they are usually very favorable to labor. Tell me where your friend lives, and I will give you the number. You do not need a lawyer to handle this.
Are you certain? My recollection is that buxiban teachers are NOT covered by the LSL. I’ll check tomorrow (unless I forget and nobody reminds me), but I am fairly certain that buxiban teachers are not covered.
Otherwise, if the contract provided for severence and notice, the contract should be followed.
But the official reason the school gave him is that the company is confronting a financial crisis. All the other teacheres were shocked. My new colleague asked me,“Can they do that? We have to give them 2 months notice before leaving, and have to pay them if we terminate the contract early, but they can fire us whenever they want?” Well, I guess so.